Prices in London continue trading at a record discount compared to futures contracts on New York’s Comex.
By David Nogales
Copper prices experienced another decline on the London Metal Exchange (LME), while achieving a new historic high on the New York Comex, further widening the gap between the two markets.
On London’s spot market, copper traded at US$4.43 per pound, a decrease of 0.98% compared to the previous session. As a result, Chile’s main export commodity reduced its gain to 4.5% in March and 12.4% year-to-date in 2025.
Across the Atlantic Ocean, in New York, the commodity was trading at US$5.21 per pound according to data from the Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) as of March 26. This represents a new historical peak and a rise of 0.64% compared to the previous trading day.
There are differences between both indicators. In the US, the Comex market trades financial derivatives, whose prices involve payment in three months and do not necessarily entail physical purchase of the metal. Conversely, the London Metal Exchange quotes copper at the spot price, meaning immediate settlement.
Copper tariffs
Nonetheless, London prices continue trading at a record discount compared to the futures contracts on New York’s Comex.
This price differential provides significant incentives for traders to ship copper to the US before the anticipated tariffs take effect.
It is worth recalling that US President Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all copper imports and ordered the Department of Commerce to investigate copper import tariffs based on national security concerns.
Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that the Republican president would announce tariffs on copper imports in the coming weeks, rather than months, prompting futures prices for the metal to surge in New York.
According to Juan Carlos Guajardo, Executive Director of Plusmining, “the natural scenariowould be that once the US sets a tariff on copper, purchases from that country would pause temporarily. This would reduce the current distortion seen in Comex prices and drive convergence towards LME prices.”
He added that the London quote represents “a more realistic price, but until this external factor ends,” it is impossible to ascertain the fundamental price without tariff expectations. However, he estimates an average copper price of US$4.25 per pound.
Source: La Tercera